Cross My Heart and Hope To Die
by Islaymca
Summary: "I never wanted it to be this way. I never wanted it to end like this...We wanted to change peoples lives for the better, not for the worse. We never knew the consequences." -Corliss' personal diaries, date unknown.
1. The Beginning

"I never wanted it to be this way. I never wanted it to end like this, with us so helpless, so alone. We were supposed to make a difference. We wanted to change our circumstances, change the lives of others for the better. Not for the worse. We never knew the consequences."

Excerpt from Corliss' personal diaries, date unknown.

_**Disclaimer: This story is mine. You may not use/copy/take without my expressed permission. These characters may or may not be based on real people, but the similarities end there. These characters are not my personal opinion of that person. Once I write these characters into existence, they make their own decisions and thoughts. I cannot be held responsible if their opinions and choices do not reflect your own, if you decide that a particular character is based on yourself. I do not own TWtWB, I am only using it as a base for my story. Please R&R!**_

1. The Beginning

'Hey Corliss, what's _x_ in this question?' Said an extremely tall, slightly oriental-looking girl with long curly dark brown hair. She was lying on her side, a long-legged deer curled up in the crook of her belly. A raccoon was sleeping next to the deer, touching to a less tall, very pale girl with short red-brown hair. A smatter of freckles complimented her blue-green eyes, which were trained on a textbook.

'Uh, 43. I got it by multiplying the original pronumeral by it's factor. You get it, Maeve?'

'Yeah, but what about _b_?' Corliss launched into another explanation. Across the tiny campsite, a small fire crackled and spat bright embers into the dark night as a tanned and very fit long brown haired girl threw some more firewood on it.

'Eliana, don't worry! The teachers will not and don't know we are even up here. I mean, this is the Ag farm, it's not like they would actually care. We're just a bunch of Year 12s spending a few nights up at the farm. Though, if we had boys, it would be a different matter,' She paused, and winked dramatically. 'You know how they are about boys and girls… socializing. Anyways, they're all busy, the Battle of the Towns is on, and you know _everyone_ goes. Oh, and no, they can't see the fire; it's really heavily wooded here. It's fine! This is supposed to be a relaxing weekend, don't get your knickers in a knot.'

The pale girl next to her flicked her short-ish mousey brown hair, and touched the owl next to her, who had fluffed up it's feathers. 'Loreli, this isn't a good idea. I have a bad feeling about this.'

Loreli rubbed the Turkish Van cat next to her. 'Loreli, I also have a bad feeling about this. It feels… wrong. Can we go home soon?' It purred.

'Larcothia, calm your farm. You are such a worrywart. We will not be going home today, not till later. Hey, Maeve, Corliss! Stop studying! The HSC isn't for a couple weeks!' Loreli called. Maeve and Corliss emerged from a tent, the deer and raccoon close behind. Corliss ruffled the raccoon.

'Camillashaa agrees with both Lari and Ekanarimata. I don't. I want to have fun for once!' Said Corliss. Eka hooted in agreement.

The deer said softly, 'Maeve, Corliss and I agree, this should be fun.'

'Meritathia, you always agree with Maeve,' said Lari. 'Have your own opinion for once!'

'Enough!' Loreli shouted, breaking up the squabbling between the dæmons. 'Let's not talk like this. This is supposed to be relaxing! Now let's sit down and roast some marshmallows.'

They did as Loreli said, soon settling down into the rhythm of marshmallow on stick, roast and eat. 'So, Loreli,' Maeve said, 'I heard from a little bird that you like a certain boy in your swim team?'

Loreli laughed. 'Yeah Maeve, I'm pretty sure that little bird was Seraph's canary, Sogria. That bird just can't help the gossip!'

Maeve smiled, and covered it with her hand. Corliss and Eliana laughed with Loreli. 'Oh Maeve, you never could keep a secret!'

Corliss pulled a very lightly roasted marshmallow off her stick, and got the goo all over her. She laughed with the others and wiped it off. 'How funny would it be if a war started while we were away?'

They all laughed. 'Corliss, don't be silly. That kind of stuff only happens in other countries. Not here in Australia, that's for sure. We would have a better chance of being hit by a meteorite in the next few weeks then a war starting. Now, who wants to paint nails?'

Loreli painted hers in a fuchsia pink, Eliana in a watermelon green, Maeve in a light violet, and Corliss in a foam blue. Loreli braided everyone's hair, so it would be all curly when they woke up in the morning. The dæmons curled up together, heads on backs, bellies and shoulders, and fell asleep as their people stayed up late into the cloudy night, talking, laughing and gossiping.

When Corliss awoke at 6 am, much earlier then the others, as she lived on a farm and had to feed the animals, she heard a low buzzing sound. A helicopter flew straight overhead. She sighed at the disturbance. She thought it was just a fire-rescue helicopter, they were always around at this time of year. She rolled over and crawled out of her sleeping bag, crouched as Cam jumped onto her shoulders and wrapped her arms around her neck, and tiptoed over several sleeping bodies to get outside. She stretched and dropped Cam onto the ground, then stirred the fading embers of the fire around in the pit. Deciding that it was non-salvageable, she walked around the campsite and collected a bunch of sticks and twigs, and arranged them in a teepee-like structure in the fire pit, with the smallest twigs in the center and the sticks pointing upward around it. Filling the structure, she scattered dry leaves around and over the tepee, then flicked a match into it. It burst into flames. She smiled inwardly, pleased that she was still able to light fires. All those years of having our only source of heat as wood fires has paid off, she thought. A rustle from the tent announced Eliana and her owl, perched on her shoulder. She stumbled over to Corliss and sank down onto a log.

'Oh, I had a terrible nights sleep, Corliss. I tossed and turned all night, worrying about this; I just feel we shouldn't be here.' She was clutching her cross necklace, twining it around and over her fingers. Corliss leaned over and wrapped her arm around Eliana's shoulder.

'It's okay, we're fine here. Come on, this is a relaxing weekend, not a worry weekend. Would you like some hot chocolate?'

Within the hour, Maeve and Loreli were up, and they sat around the campfire in silence, sipping hot chocolate. Loreli suggested a walk, which the group readily agreed with. Packing up the campsite was easy; they all had a pack with a small tent, a small solid fuel stove, a bit of fuel, some extra food (snacks and a sandwich, plus emergency rations), their sleeping bags, a weatherproof jacket, and some extra clothing. They packed up, and started walking toward the school. They were walking slowly, due to being in no great hurry and having a nice time socializing. By the time they got past the farm buildings, however, they stopped. They were looking at the oval.

Maeve spoke into the silence, her voice resounding in the still morning air. 'What _is_ that?'


	2. Unknown Enemies

Cross My Heart And Hope to Die

2. Unknown Enemies

**You know the disclaimer. Also, for this story's intents and purposes, Orange is a smaller town then it is now. **

'What… what is that?' Maeve repeated, her eyes as wide as saucers. She pointed silently at the James Sheahan oval, which was filled with people. This would be normal for the fair, but the oval was surrounded by razor tipped barbed wire, and people in military garb were rolling out, taking down and putting up fencing. A train was next to the oval, and boxes and crates were being unloaded off onto vehicles, which then moved them into the hall. People were everywhere, military and Orangians alike, lining up, walking and talking together. Only about a quarter of Orange was there, Corliss presumed the rest were at the showground. The whole scene was a cacophonous image of sound and color. The group of teenagers sunk back against the Ag farm shed.

Corliss gathered her wits first and whispered, 'I am thinking that looks like a military camp. I think some invading military force has taken over Orange. It looks like most of the town is captured and is being held there, so-'

'Shh.' Loreli said. 'What?'

'SHH! I can hear something.' They sat in silence for a few moments, but then heard the unmistakable sound of people talking. They realized it was behind them, in the shed. The sound was beginning to get louder, unintelligible words from another language. The group looked at each other in fear.

Loreli whispered, silent as a mouse, 'let's go back to our campsite. There's that fence, we can scale it using the trees and get over to that dam. From there we can rethink about our options.'

Corliss uttered but one word out of the side of her mouth. 'Run.'

They ran.

By the time they were at the rifle range, they heard shouting from the direction of the shed. Eliana glanced back, and shouted to the others, 'they're coming! God help us, they're coming.'

She sounded close to tears. They all were, but fright had cinched their tearducts shut, instead focusing on getting the body cooled down by perspiration. By the time they reached the fence, around 5 soldiers were about halfway there, and gaining. Corliss was already up the tree. 'Throw the packs up to me! I can chuck them over.'

Loreli, who was the strongest, threw the packs up. Corliss caught them and threw them over the 4-meter tall fence. The dæmons changed into fast tree climbing animals, and stayed near their person. Maeve and Eliana were the slowest, started climbing the tree Corliss was in, as it was the closest to the fence and had the most handholds. The soldiers were on the rifle range, coming closer faster with each step. Loreli could hear their shouting as she flung herself up the tree. Corliss grasped her hand, and together they jumped off the tree. Falling heavily, they ran to the packs. The soldiers were at the fence. One had his gun up and was loading it to shoot. The others had run down the hill, as right next to the fence the land steeply sloped downwards. Corliss' pack was stuck on a root. She pulled hard, and threw herself backwards over the edge. The bullet grazed her cheek as it flew past at a high-speed velocity, leaving a deep cut that instantly welled bright red blood, which spattered across her cheek.

Corliss tumbled, head over feet over head again down the steep hill. She rolled, over and over and over, hit by branches, rocks and lumps in the landscape alike. She hit a tree truck, which she was wrapped around in a heartbeat, her back cracking with the strain. Her pack, still with a gravitational pull, flew forward and hit her in the face, snapping her neck around and flipping her off the tree and making her continue in a downward trajectory. She bounced off a rock, and was stopped by Loreli tackling her, preventing her from rolling straight off the edge of the turf and falling into the water. Loreli pulled her upright and started pushing her up a tree. Corliss, bashed to the state of stupidity, after rolling in a downwards fashion down a hill, was pushed and pulled until she got to a high branch of a tree. There other hands held her, in her delusional state she wasn't sure who was who. Her pack was pried from unfeeling fingers, and was stuffed into a crook of the tree. There the group waited, gasping for breath as quietly as they could, as they watched five soldiers run down the hill, with the ease and agility of those who had done it before.

The 4 people and their dæmons sat, awaiting their fate, with bated breath, hoping against hope that the soldiers would not crane their necks upwards, and see the 4 frightened teenagers crowded on a branch, looking downwards with eyes that were resigned to what was surely about to happen next, numb eyes, batshit scared eyes, and eyes that they would fight to the end, no matter what the cost to personal safety.


	3. Beads of Blood

3: Beads of Blood

**You know of the disclaimer. **

Corliss' eyes blinked, and regained focus. She noticed that a soldier was leaning against the tree they were in, scanning the bush around him silently. She heard the crunching footsteps as the other soldiers crept through the underbrush, guns raised and at the ready. She noticed they were all young, in their early twenties. The one at the base of their tree was even younger, their age, about 17-18. He was the most nervous, and a finch sat on his shoulder, nestled against the crook of his neck. Whereas the other four soldiers, dogs at their heels, moved like a well-oiled machine, methodically covering the ground in all four directions, the young soldier was flinching at every noise, gun flicking around to noises, like a moth to a flame. She scanned the surroundings. In front, and to the left was filled with typical Australian scrub. Behind, however, in about 200 meters, was a large dam. She knew that if she struck out due west, then maybe they could get a means of transport. Looking down again at the jittery soldier, she felt a glob of snot detach itself from the inside of her nose, something it did regularly, and she would just blow it out. Now, this was a different story. She could not sniff for fear of being heard. She cursed her sinuses quietly. It hung suspended, then dropped. It fell onto the soldier's helmet. He jumped, flailing his gun everywhere. One of the soldiers came back and barked a series of stern, guttural words. He hung his head, then stomped off into the bush. The commander then stood at the base of the tree, a falcon resting on his shoulder.

Corliss looked at her friends. Eliana was rocking slowly back and forth, clutching her necklace, eyes wide and lips moving as she silently uttered a prayer. Eka sat on her knees, and rubbed her head against her soulmate. Maeve sat, stroking Meri, who had changed into a robin. Loreli stared into Lari's big golden eyes, having a silent conversation. Corliss looked at Cam, and the raccoon looked at her. Cam nodded, then silently changed into a peregrine falcon. She took off, and glided silently to a far side of the lake. The sound of a stick breaking from there echoed across the bush. All soldiers simultaneously paused, heads turned towards the sound. The sound of crashing footsteps and a 'shh! They'll hear you!'. The soldiers immediately vanished in the direction that the sounds came from, following the leaf brushes and twig snaps at random intervals. Corliss turned, and motioned to her group. They slid as quietly as they could down the tree. Corliss started running west, but was grabbed by Maeve. 'What are you doing? That's the way the soldiers went!' She whispered vehemently.

Corliss shook her head, and then melted into the trees. Maeve glanced at her companions, hesitated but a moment, then ran after her. Unlike Maeve expected, after only a few metres, Corliss cut right and ran back up the hill to the school. She followed the fence until the corner, and continued. Here there were not many trees, so with darting steps she hopped from one cover to the other. They could still see the dam. Using this method, they came to a small copse of trees. The group dived under some thick bushes, and lay there in the dirt panting. Corliss pulled a Ventolin puffer out of her bag, and sucked on it for a minute. Her breathing slowed from haggard to calm. Loreli looked at her. 'You ok?'

'Yeah, now. I just was feeling pretty wheezy. But we gotta keep the enemy guessing. C'mon, let's go.' Corliss stood, and turned. She walked off, staying low, following the natural bushline. They came to a road, dirty and dusty. A sign announced the name as 'Rifle Range Road'. Maeve chuckled dryly.

'Named after our schools' famous rifle range, eh?' They crouched, following the trees. Next was Shiralee Road, with was bitumen. They were a fair ways from the school and dam, but they didn't want to take any chances. They hadn't seen any soldiers though, nor any convoys.

'Where are we going?' Eliana said, sounding a little shaky, but staying strong.

'To a place I know. Don't worry, we're not too far.' Corliss replied, still walking.

It was late in the afternoon when they arrived at a small house, with a large barn right next to it. Corliss walked immediately to the house, and knocked on the door. The others looked at one another. 'Hello? Johnno, Noni, are you there? It's Lissi. Hello?'

Corliss knew it was futile, so she ushered the others inside. She threw a few logs in the fire, and dumped some twigs and paper on top. Striking a match, she lit the flame. Leaving the door a little open, she walked over to the kettle, and turned it on. Pointing to the table, she told the others to sit. She pulled four mugs out of the cupboard, and filled them with tea. She set them on the table, along with sugar and milk. They sat silently, sipping the hot tea. Maeve broached a question. 'Liss, where's Cam?'

Corliss looked up. 'She'll be along soon, don't you worry. She fooled those lackwit soldiers all the way up the dam, then led them far away from us.'

'But how can she leave you? I mean, our dæmons can't go further then a few meters, before it hurts.'

'It started when I was a little girl. Me and Cam wanted to be apart from each other, so we could play more effectively. So every day we would strain at the ends of the invisible tethers, making the length longer and longer. We can go so far now; I've lost count how many kilometers! It's relatively quite simple, we can do it when-' She stopped abruptly.

'Something's wrong, I can hear- GET DOWN!' She dived under the table, mug cracking and spilling tea all over the floor. The others followed a split second later. The roar of a car covers the sound. It pulls into the driveway. Soldiers jump out, boots slamming into the gravel driveway.

'Move, move!' Corliss pulls them all through a back door through the laundry, and they duck under a sprawling hedge. They hear the soldiers walking through each room, checking them for signs of habitation. A shout rings out; they have discovered the hot tea on the ground. Corliss then knows they will find them in a matter of minutes if they don't move soon. Biting her lip, she tries to think of a way out. Then she realizes. The most obvious place of all.


	4. Horses for Courses

4. Horses for Courses

_**Disclaimer: This story is mine. You may not use/copy/take without my expressed permission. These characters may or may not be based on real people, but the similarities end there. These characters are not my personal opinion of that person. Once I write these characters into existence, they make their own decisions and thoughts. I cannot be held responsible if their opinions and choices do not reflect your own, if you decide that a particular character is based on yourself. I do not own TWtWB, I am only using it as a base for my story. Please R&R!**_

She didn't know whether it would work, but she could try it. Corliss whispered to her friends, 'Follow me. Quiet now, that's the way you do it.'. She scuttled under the hedge to another side of the house, where there was an empty pot. Knowing she had not time to lose, she turned it over and vaulted onto the roof. She pulled Loreli up with her, and sunk low against the red tiles. Crawling, she climbed the incline to a spot near the top, and started feeling the tiles. The others were bemused, but knew better then to argue. Wordless, they watched as she uncovered a small hinge, lifted up a trapdoor, and then were ushered in. They could hear the soldiers in the laundry, the final room of the house before the back door, searching thoroughly. Corliss herself was the last in and closed the hatch just as soldiers spilled outside. Laying on the wooden floor, hearts shuddering form the close escape, Corliss could hear the soldiers muttering in a foreign language, hitting bushes with sticks. She was glad she was listening to one of Noni's rants, when she mentioned the hatch in the roof. She watched dust motes dance in the sliver of light coming from the corner of the hatch. This attic had not been used in a long time. She put her hand up to the latch, felt around, and pushed the deadlock into place. Then, concentrating, she called to Cam through her mind. Not all dæmon and human pairs could mindtalk, only if they had a special and heartfelt connection, which had to be developed with the right relationship. Then, they had to be trained, through the mind, to communicate. Then came the hardest part- they had to become one through blood, where they cut themselves, and shared the blood together. Although gruesome, it meant wonders for their current situation.

_Where are you?_ Cam answered. _I was really, _really_, worried when you wouldn't reply. What is it?_

Corliss recounted her plan, and then got Cam's approval. She asked her to hurry; they were covering all the area around the house, systematically, and would probably find them eventually.

Within the minute, they heard a car rev nearby, then speed onto the road. The soldiers shouted, then got into their Jeep. The sound of the car leaving gave them all a sigh of relief. Corliss shushed them, because the soldiers could still be around. The minutes turned into hours, and muscles cramped. Eliana groaned.

'How long? My watch says we've been here three hours…' Corliss shushed her. A scratch on the roof heralded Cam's arrival. Corliss opened it a crack, and a snake slithered in. It wrapped itself around Corliss, and recounted its story:

"I was outside when Lissy told me the plan. I went up to the next house, and found a car. Luckily, it was four-wheeled drive, so it had a bit of rev. I revved a few times, then gunned it down the road. It was bumpy 'cos of the potholes, but I managed to hang on. I swept around all the corners, and fishtailed once or twice. The windows were tinted, so they couldn't see who was inside, though they thought it was more then me. I gave them a merry chase, over hide 'n' hill, but they stayed hot on my tail. I just managed to lose them, only because I did more turns then they could. I dumped the car behind a house, and flew back. And no, there is no one here. It was good you stayed in though, as I saw a soldier leaving as I arrived. He was hiding behind a tree. I did a thorough reconnaissance, but there is no one left."

Corliss rubbed the scaly skin. 'Okay guys, lets get out of here for some fresh air and decide what we should do.'

They clambered up out of the trapdoor, and slid down the tiles. Retreating to the thickly wooded hill behind the house. Sitting on the grass, with leaves as cushions, they conferred about what to do.

Eliana spoke first. 'I think we should hunker down in the roof for the night. They might come back, so then they won't find us. We can get bedding from the house.'

'I don't think so,' Loreli said, shifting to get in a more comfortable position. 'If they come back, and find the bedding removed, then they know we've been back. I think we should get the bedding from the houses near here, maybe that house that Cam got the car from. Then we can be assured that they don't know we're in the roof.'

'Good ideas guys. Maeve, anything else we haven't thought of?' Corliss smiled, and wiped her nose with her sleeve.

'I think we shouldn't disturb the house at all. Like, not even touch a door. So they don't think we've been back,' Maeve chimed in. They all agreed.

After a few hours of finding items from nearby houses, mainly food and bedding, they met back up at the roof. Eliana had been in charge of sheets, doonas, and pillows, Maeve had found food, and Loreli medical supplies. They had all taken items as unobtrusively as possible. Corliss had spent the afternoon decoating horses, and feeding them. She wormed them with double doses of promectin- and mectin- based drenches. She rasped their hooves and cleaned out the pockets of food in their teeth. She gave them all a massive feed, full of nutrition and minerals. She then let most of them out, to run free and graze, except four horses and one pack-pony. She assembled their tack, saddles and bridles for the horses, and packs for the pony. One large pack she filled with horse items, like tough currycombs, hoof picks, minerals, and various bits and pieces. She waterproofed the tack, and polished it to help it withstand the rigors it was about to face. The other three she left for filling for essential items for the humans.

Returning to the house, she found the others waiting, chatting quietly. They returned to the roof for the night, and supped on cold soup and spaghetti with bread. They ate well, eating plenty of fruit, and other perishables, knowing they would not be around for long. They slept warmly under piles of blankets, only woken once by a patrol going past and searching the house. For five hair-raising minutes, the soldiers searched, but obviously were satisfied by what they saw.

When they woke, very early in the morning, Maeve raised the question of what they were going to do for transport. Corliss smiled, and lead them over to the barn. In the field next door, Corliss retrieved four bedraggled horses, and a furry pony. An older brown and white pinto was given to Maeve, named Arrow. A quiet chestnut gelding named Yogi was given to Eliana. A quick-stopper white appaloosa named Hero was given to Loreli, and a spritely young white gelding named Gundy was claimed by Corliss. A fat, hairy golden pony called Goldy was their pack-pony. Corliss, wanting to encourage relationships between the beasts and their riders, so they spent a precious hour brushing and tacking their horses. Corliss also rasped the pinto's hooves severely, as he had fast growing feet that got sore very quickly. Once they were tacked and ready, Corliss got them to practice changing tack and getting on and off. Even though it was unlikely, she wanted them to be able to ride and continue on without her if she got otherwise deterred. The started to ride, Corliss leading the pack-pony, packs filled with non-perishable food and much needed items, like medical supplies and tents.

The early morning half-light gave the landscape a strange glow, and managed to make shadows lengthen and appear in places they shouldn't be. It was eerie, and filled the group with a sense of dread. The dæmons huddled against their pairs, and each took comfort from the other.

They had started going in a different direction, cutting across the train tracks to go through the back paddocks to get to the mountains, when they saw the first body.


End file.
